Books At The Beach
by The Darling Child
Summary: Belle, a beautiful young french girl moves with her father to Greece. Will Belle be able to finally make new friends in this new land? Will she also be able to find love? Eric/Belle pairing
1. Chapter 1 Au Revoir France

**AN: okay, so this is my first crossover on fanfiction. Usually I'm not a big fan of them, but I love both Eric and Belle and this is how I imagine the two if they were ever in a romantic relationship. Peace out, A-town...okay, ignore that and just enjoy the story and DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW.**

* * *

The young brunette scanned the horizon with her dark eyes. Light coloured buildings were scattered all over the coastal area. The stone street ahead of them was packed with busy merchant selling fish, and shellfish.

She followed her father, riding on his horse, Philippe.

"Oh Belle!" Cried her father as he looked from left to right, barely able to digest their surroundings, "Look at all the fish! Have you ever seen such seafood in _France_?"

Belle tightened her grip on the reigns and gave a weak smile. She missed France already, but deep down, she knew that this was what her father really wanted, to start anew. She couldn't deny the fact that Greece was beautiful because, well, it was. Great white pillars all around them reflected the large hot sun above. Belle squinted at the light.

In front of her, her father guided her and Philippe through the busy market, his head swishing from left to right as he pointed out little things all around them, "Oh look! A sailor's bar!"

Belle smiled patiently.

She loved her father, really, she did, but _good lord_.

He turned back to Belle, "And look over there! A library!"

At that, Belle turned her head to catch a glimpse of a tiny space packed with books. Over-flowing with books. Cardboard boxes were placed outside baring books. A tiny smile played on her lips. At least she'd have _something_ to herself here.

"Aaaand, here we are!" Her father declared as Philippe came to a sudden halt. In front of them, a white house stood most humbly. It must've been at least fifty years old, but everything was still attached. A small space for a horse or two was arranged beside the house. An olive tree was planted nearby.

"Oh father, It's beautiful!" Belle sang.

At her approving, the podgy man threw his arms around his daughter and they embraced happily.

She stepped away from him and led Philippe to the small stables calling out to her father, "Do you need any help unpacking?"

Her father chuckled, "No, no! You go run off now, Belle!"

Belle rolled her eyes, "Father-"

He shooed her away, "Go on! Explore! This is a new town, with new hopes and new people. Maybe you'll meet some friends!"

Belle nodded obediently; finally, a little time to herself, though doubted what her father had said about her finding friends.

Belle? Friends? Yeah, not happening. She was always dubbed the freak. The bookworm. But she couldn't help it if she got along better with paper than she did with human beings.

At least she could get a good walk in now.

And just as she turned to leave their new home, she felt her father's hand grasp the collar of her dress, pulling her back.

"Father wha-"

"Maurice!" Someone nearby interrupted her. Belle turned to see a thin man with light brown hair standing with his arms out. He wore a merchant's outfit and looked to be about her father's age. His eyes were a soft grey.

"Oliver!" Her father responded letting go of Belle's collar and throwing his arms around the other man.

Belle frowned to herself.

"It's been so long!" Oliver spoke, "How is France? Do they still grow the best roses?"

Maurice laughed, "Why yes Oliver, of course they do! France will always have the most beautiful roses!"

Oliver then turned to Belle, His features amused, "And the most beautiful women it seems! This must be Belle!"

Belle gave a friendly smile and extended her hand out to the man, who ignored it and gave a bear hug instead.

After almost crushing Belled, he turned his attention back to her father, "My Maurice, though France may have the best roses and women, Greece has the best fish."

The two of the older men burst into hysterics.

"We also have nice beaches," Belle heard someone add. She turned her head to find herself facing a young man her own age with the same wavy light hair as Oliver, that reached his shoulders. His eyes were darker though, and his body was a lot more in shape.

Belle knew very well that this was the kind of guy that the girls in France would swoon over.

Herself? Not so much.

He smiled at her and extended his hand in a friendly greeting, "Hey, I'm Kaden. I'm embarrassed to say that I'm related to that man over there," He nodded his head towards Oliver. Belle couldn't help but chuckle.

"Belle," She replied, taking his hand.

He brought it to his lips, giving it a gentle kiss. A wry smile played on his lips, "Belle. What's that French for? Beauty?"

Belle nodded, "Yeah, It is."

"It suits you."

She felt her cheeks redden.

"So you've met Kaden!" She heard her father say as he turned his attention to the two teenagers, "Kaden, I was just telling Belle to run along and explore the place before I ran into you and your father. If you're not busy maybe you could show Belle around?"

Kaden straightened his back, "Of course."

Belle gave a sigh of frustration. Just when she thought she had some time to herself

* * *

"And this," Kaden announced, his arm extended towards the large wooden structures ahead of them, "Is the main port."

Belle followed Kaden down the stone path, not looking up from her book. It was about the Roman Empire. Caesar's men vs. Antony's men in a battle of terror and-

Belle jumped from surprise as her book was pulled away from her.

"Hey-"

Kaden crossed his arms, her eyes were focused on her red book that he held, "Will you stop? I'm trying to show you around."

Belle blinked. But obediently continued following Kaden as he led her to one side of the dock. All around her, men ran about getting their ships ready to set sail. They carried crates off and on boats, nets full of fish were everywhere.

She breathed in a fresh breath of air, the scent of seaweed making her nose twitch as she strolled along the wooden dock, following Kaden leading her to a tiny wooden boat that could barely be compared to the magnificent ships beside it.

"This is my boat," Kaden boasted proudly, "It took me a whole year to save up for it."

"That's…dedication." Belle breathed.

He untied the boat from the dock and helped her inside of it. Belle hesitated. What a great idea it was moving to the Mediterranean. Despite her non ability to swim of course.

"Ready?" Kaden asked her.

Belle shrugged.

Kaden grabbed the wooden paddles that rested inside of his boat and began steering the boat away from the busy marina.

Belle's dark eyes watched the people along the shore and dock, running about, setting sail, laughing, drinking, chatting. She then made one promise to herself, It was here, in Greece that she'd make her first friend. She didn't need to become miss popularity, just one friend would do.

She looked to Kaden, and to her horror, found him holding her precious book above the water, ready to drop it.

"No!" She yelled, standing up immediately. The boat bobbed up and down viciously.

"Belle!" He shrieked back, "What are you doing! You're going to flip the whole boat over!"

"Please give me my book back." She said a little quieter, still standing up.

Kaden smirked, "It's been distracting you all day. It's just a book."

"Stop!" Belle lunged at him, and sent a shrill scream as the boat rocked so violently that both her and Kaden were dumped into the cool Mediterranean water.

Belle thrashed her limbs about, she felt her lungs slowly filling with water. Her movements became less encouraging…

* * *

The man servant followed the young man, scurrying along the wooden deck of the marina, "Your majesty-"

"Eric," The dark haired man corrected.

"_Eric_," Grimsby shuddered, "I don't believe it is a good idea for you to go out to sea today. You are aware that the countess of Marbella is arriving later this evening and you don't want to smell like seaweed when you meet her, do you? This could be your potential wife-"

"Well," Eric said as he assisted another man carry a couple of wooden crates onto the giant ship awaiting them, "If she plans on being my wife, I advise her to get used to the smell of seaweed."

Grimsby sighed in defeat, beside him, a great English sheepdog barked happily, running along the dock.

"Besides," Eric added, "You shouldn't focus on finding me a wife."

Grimsby snorted, "You're twenty!"

"I'll find her when I'm ready," Eric answered.

He dropped the last wooden crate on the deck of the ship and quietly strolled off to the main marina where he took in a deep breath and observed what view lay in front of him. He loved the sight of men working together. Bonding and friendship at the sea. There was nothing better than that.

"What about a princess?" Grimsby came rushing to Eric's side, "There are quite a few Russian princess that-"

"Grimsby," Eric said a little seriously now, "I can do without a woman in my life, really."

It was then that he heard the scream. All hundred of the men by the marina turned their heads to see a young lady fall into the sea.

Eric didn't hesitate. Before Grimsby could complain about the stench of seaweed again, Eric had dove into the sea and began propelling himself towards the girl. She splashed and twirled and tried her best to stay above the water, but to him, it was obvious that her swimming ability was very poor.

He grabbed her waist and pulled her in close to his chest as he began swimming back to the docks. There, many of his sailor mates helped hoist the two body's on the wooden structure.

They laid the girl on her back, and Eric quickly moved his hand to her throat to feel her pulse. His other hand moved to her forehead where he pulled a strand of hair out of her face.

The girl suddenly opened her dark eyes and gasped for air.

"You're okay," He breathed in her ear. His face was inches above hers as they both panted.

Grimsby came rushing to the scene, "Your Majesty!"

Eric's eyes were still on the girl below him, his breath still unsteady.

"Are you all right? I'm sure that the countess of Marbella will…uh…be enthused about your bravery, but the _smell_!" Grimsby scrunched up his nose.

Eric finally rolled over onto his back beside the girl and eventually hoisted himself up off the wooden dock.

He held out a hand to the beautiful girl below him and she took it gratefully.

It was when he finally helped her up that he was able to take in her remarkable features. Her dark eyes stood out on her clear, pale face as did her full light lips. A permanent blush stained her clear cheeks.

"I'm Eric," He finally said with a warm smile.

He watched the girl throw her head to one side and twist her wet hair with her small hands, causing sea water to drip from the tip and make slight pattering noises onto the wood below them.

She opened her mouth to answer but got interrupted.

"BELLE," Belle turned around slowly to find herself facing a drenched man. His light, shoulder length hair was in his face, hiding his eyes. He sighed and marched up to her.

"Oh, hello Kaden," She smiled weakly.

Kaden glared at her and grabbed her arm, beginning to pull her away from Eric.

"Can you believe that guy?" He growled.

Belle blinked, "Eric? I thought he was rather nice. He saved me from drowning."

Kaden smirked, "He obviously did that to make himself look good. He is a prince after all."

At that, Belle turned her head back to catch a last glimpse of the man that had saved her to see him playing with a large shaggy sheepdog. At the same time, Eric turned his head to look to her, and their eyes met. He smiled and waved, and Belle quickly averted her gaze.

No man with a smile _that_ welcoming could be _that_ bad.

* * *

**AN: So? Good? Bad? let me know! Review, Review, Review!**


	2. Chapter 2 She's a Reader Not a Swimmer

"He's a fine young man, isn't he?" Maurice insisted, nudging his daughter, as she sat beside him on their new sofa, curled up, practically inhaling the book that she was reading, "His father owns a popular fish market nearby, they're quite wealthy."

"That's nice," Belle said, not looking up from her novel.

Her father continued, "He's quite a charming man actually. Apparently the ladies here are all over him."

Belle stopped reading, frowned to herself and lay her book down on the coffee table in front of her.

"Father?"

Her father smiled merrily, "Yes dear?"

Belle's voice was concerned, "Are you trying to set me up with Kaden?"

Her father snorted, "Of course not!"

Belle narrowed her eyes at him sceptically before picking up her book once more, "Good."

Maurice began, "But what's wrong with Kaden? I should think that he's a good man. Perhaps a potential husband…"

"Father!" Belle exclaimed a little dramatically, even to her own ears, "He is a good man, and I am sure that he'd make a great husband…he's just not for me."

Her father heaved a sigh and rose from his perch, moving to a nearby window, "Oh Belle. I'm afraid to say time is running out. You're a beautiful young woman with a great life ahead of you! The amount of marriage proposals, bribes, and requests I get for you are unreal! I suggest settling down with a man such as Kaden. He seems to have his life set and the two of you have so much in common!"

At that, Belle raised on perfectly arched eyebrow at her father, "Like what?"

Maurice stammered, "Like…you're both young and you…both enjoy…walks…"

Belle sighed to herself, "Father, we're just not made for each other. I want the kind of love that people write books about. Something passionate, desirable-"

"Unrealistic," Her father added.

Belle slouched in her seat, and after a minute or so of silence, she concluded that she needed a walk to blow off the steam and stress. Without another word, she quickly grabbed her book and hurried out the front door, finding herself in the middle of the busy market.

"Hey! Watch it!" Men carrying large crates yelled as she walked by cautiously. She tried her best to keep out of people's ways until she finally found the crammed library her father had pointed out before. After finding a good book, she seated herself at an empty café table beside the library and opened her book to read.

"…Apparently she was quite a pig."

"Well what did he expect?"

"Countess of Marbella? As if."

"And he's hosting a ball!"

"When?"

"Next Thursday."

Belle groaned to herself and looked up from her novel to find herself eying three young women her own age. They wore luxurious gowns in rich colours, one blue, one red, one green. The lady in the red had long dark brown curls. Her long lashes hovered over her blue eyes daintily as her narrowed eyes scanned the market every few seconds in search of new prey to gossip of. The lady in the blue had light brown hair, her eyes were green, and she looked rather bothered as she fanned herself with her manicured hand. The last lady, in the green looked amused. Her red hair was worn up and she wore a menacing smile on her lips. Though Belle hated to admit it, each of the women were beautiful with remarkable features of their own.

"Are you going?" The light haired lady asked.

The girl in the red dress snorted, "Don't be ridiculous Tara, of course I'm going."

The lady in the green smiled wryly, "Brag all you want about your new frock, Rebecca, we both know that I'm the one that Eric is looking for."

This comment caused the lady in the red to frown, "Let's not get carried away here. We've succeeded, Prince Eric is finally getting a ball together. For us!"

The three women sighed to themselves.

Belle did as well as she got up from her seat and continued down one of the stone pathways, in search of a quite place to read. She followed a small winding stone path that branched off the main one to small dock where a couple of fisherman's boats were tied up.

All seemed quite, except for the soothing sound of the sea splashing up against the rocky shore and the boats.

Belle sighed to herself in accomplishment and sat herself down at the edge of the dock, letting her feet dangle over the water.

Just as she opened her book, she was interrupted by a melodic sound. Somewhere nearby, someone was playing a wind instrument. Belle furrowed her brows and quickly stood up, looking about to identify where the noise was coming from. It was then that she saw a glimpse of jet black hair on one of the nearby fisherman boats.

As Belle cocked her head to on side to catch a better sight of the man, she lost balance and went plummeting into the water.

She quietly hoped that this would not become a habit.

Belle kicked her feet and flailed her arms, but the water continued to infatuate her lungs. Suddenly, she felt a strong arm wrap around her waist, pulling her up from the water. She let her head relax against his chest as he carried her out of the water safely and onto his small fisherman's boat.

Belle coughed violently, water dripping from her mouth.

Eric sat her down in the boat and walked inside the small shelter on the boat, coming back out with an extra pair of beige pants and a white cotton shirt similar to the one he was wearing.

"Here," He said throwing the clothes to Belle, "Put these on. We don't want you catching a cold now, do we?"

Belle nodded obediently and took the clothes. She hesitated.

Eric blinked, "Oh, Uh…I'll turn around."

When he did, Belle quickly slipped out of her soaking wet blue dress and into the pants and shirt that Eric had fetched for her.

"Sorry if they smell like fish," Eric laughed, still turned around.

Once Belle was finished changing, Eric was able to turn back around to face her. The pants that he lent to her were alright around the waist area, though they were too long for her, she cuffed the bottoms. The shirt was oversized and looked bizarre over her small frame.

To Eric, she looked perfect.

"You're new here, right?" He asked taking a seat on the floor of the boat beside her.

Belle nodded.

"And you can't swim," Eric stated as a fact.

Belle squirmed uncomfortably.

He smirked, "Well, someone should probably teach you how."

He turned to face her, "Say, what are you doing tomorrow. I think you've had enough water for today."

Belle hesitated, " I don't know, I couldn't possibly get in the way of your previous plans and-"

Eric shook all her concern away, "It would be my pleasure teaching you how to swim. After all, you can't live on the coast and not know how to. Take today and yesterday for example."

Belle pursed her lips, "Alright then."

After an uncomfortable silence, Belle got up to leave, only to have Eric stand up as well, taking a hold of her elbow wrist and spinning her back to face him.

"And today?" He questioned, "What are your plans for today?"

Belle knew the answer to that. It included a prince, and a princess, and true love. Sadly, it was all fictional because she was planning on reading about it.

"I-"

"Has anyone given you a proper tour yet?" Eric wondered.

Belle's mind focused on Kaden. Yes, he did give her a proper tour…She just didn't really pay attention.

Eric smiled, "Come on, let me just give you a simple tour."

"Okay, fine," Belle sighed in defeat.

Eric beamed. He helped Belle out of the boat and double knotted it to the dock.

He guided her through the small streets, showing her little shops and markets that she would have missed otherwise. He taught her how to make her way through the busy markets and how to avoid being ran into.

He took off his newspaper boy hat and fit it onto her head, smiling.

After a couple hours of wandering through the town, Eric finally took her to a very specific location. The little pub was hidden behind two grand markets. The only way that Belle could tell that there was something in between was because of the large amount of noise coming from inside.

"Now," Eric said seriously, "This is a men-only pub. It's a sailors pub, but I'd really like you to meet some of the guys."

He looked Belle up and down and nodded in satisfaction. Almost everybody inside was drunk. It wouldn't be a problem bringing Belle inside.

He led her indoors and she gasped at the sight. Wooden tables were arranged in every corner of the room. Men of all sizes ran about singing, dancing, laughing…It was a whole other world. Rum was everywhere. Alcohol galore.

Belle moved closer to Eric, avoiding a group of obnoxious drunks that were moving towards them.

After finally finding an unoccupied booth at the back of the pub, Belle and Eric sat down.

"Eric, my man!" Both Belle and Eric turned their heads to see a shorter dark haired man with dark green eyes. He looked to be about their age.

Eric laughed and stood up to greet the guy with a pat on his shoulder, "Stefan! How much have you had to drink?"

Stefan gave a wry smile, "Not enough."

The men laughed.

Eric turned to Belle, "Stefan, I'd like you to meet a new friend of mine, Belle."

Eric removed the hat he had put on Belle's head before, revealing her long dark locks.

Stefan raised his eyebrows, "Bonjour Mademoiselle."

Belle blushed.

"Eric! Stefan!" Suddenly, the three of them were joined by a third man. He was slightly overweight, but Belle was unsure if that was because of the muscles or fat on his body. He had short black hair and beady black eyes.

"Myles!" Eric and Stefan shouted out in return, including him in their hug.

Belle chuckled at the two drunks.

"I haven't seen you around here in a while!" Eric said to the bigger man.

Myles shrugged, "I've been helping out my father. Someone's been stealing our fish."

Eric shook his head, "I'll be on the look-out for any crooks."

He turned to Belle, "Belle, this is my good friend Myles. He works with me on the ship."

Belle waved in greeting. Myles smiled back, showing off his unpleasant looking teeth.

Belle smiled to herself and continued to watch the three men until something-okay, _someone_-caught her eye from behind Eric.

Kaden stomped into the bar looking displeased. His light eyebrows were furrowed and his lips were formed into a straight line.

Belle's eyes widened. She got out of her seat and tugged on Eric's shirt sleeve, "Eric, I have to go."

Eric turned around and looked down at her, "Already?"

Belle watched Kaden unsurely, "Yes," She replied to Eric, her eyes still on the other man.

Eric nodded, though he looked unhappy, "Alright, I'll walk you home."

Belle eased her way by Kaden, being unrecognized in her boy-ish getup. And after finally exiting the pub, she hastily inhaled the fresh air.

"What'd you think?" Eric asked her.

Belle smiled shyly, "Thank you for everything."

He walked her home, the street markets all closed down and unoccupied with the usual towns people.

"I'll see you tomorrow then?" Eric confirmed, "Meet me by the main marina?"

Belle smiled, "I'd be happy to."

At that, the French girl entered her home, with a great feeling inside her, Did she make a new friend?


End file.
